An embodiment of the invention and equivalents thereof relates to a peripheral device for manipulating images. The peripheral device can be used for manipulating 3D images, particularly in a surgical theatre and/or an examination room that can be for radiology. An embodiment of the invention and equivalents thereof also relates to an installation for viewing images in a surgical theater and/or examination room.
There is a growing demand for medical practitioners, such as a radiologist or surgeon, to be able to freely manipulate 3D images directly during surgery or examination. Imaging installations in an examination room or a surgical theater do not fully allow this manipulation and examination of 3D images is mostly done in a room adjoining the surgical theatre or examination room. If medical imaging systems are known comprising a peripheral device for manipulating 3D images, this peripheral device is generally incompatible with use and implementation in a surgical theatre or examination room. In particular, medical imaging systems are known which, apart from commands and switches and, if required, touch screens, integrate a peripheral device with an articulated control lever or joystick for manipulating 3D images. Such a peripheral device are further limited in terms of flexibility and do not enable easy manipulation when an image is being viewed, for example, during a surgical operation.
Furthermore, a disadvantage of a peripheral device of the joystick type is that it has ergonomics mismatching a surgical theater or examination room, where any protrusion should be avoided, as it would be likely to catch or injure patients.
Furthermore, and particularly in computer-assisted/aided design, systems using a peripheral device for manipulating a 3D image is known which. comprise a gripping head articulated along at least three degrees of freedom and connected to transmitters of position or effort allowing the movements or efforts exerted by the user on the gripping head in movement in space to be transcribed. An example of a peripheral device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,785,180.
These peripheral devices are provided only for manipulating 3D images.
Additionally, a drawback to this device is that it monopolizes both hands of the surgeon or the radiologist, the right hand for example being used to manipulate the keyboard and/or the 2D pointer, while the left hand is being used to manipulate the gripping head.